Day 9 - To Sheboygan

It is Friday and I need to get the heckfire out of dodge before rush hour traffic. After Keith and I stayed up late watching my son Matt pitch a few innings for the Alaska Goldpanners thanks to the miracle of YouTube live streaming and Roku enabled TV's, hit the hay.

I knew I had to get up early and get out of the Twin Cities Metroplex before rush hour or I would lose a lot more time.

By 7:30AM I had covered 100 miles and was safely on my way to Wisconsin, the land of cheese and Dairy Queen.

I stopped at aMcDonalds for breakfast and to catch up on some journaling. But I couldn't stay long because I had almost 300 miles still to cover. I have managed to avoid driving at night this whole trip, and I wanted to keep that streak alive.

While at Micky-Dees, I reset my GPS but was shocked to discover that Mike White and his lovely wife Mary do not in fact live in Milwaukee but an hour or so north in the hamlet of Sheboygan, made famous by John Candy in Home Alone. (See the YouTube Clip Here).

Wisconsin Harley's Home

Up until this point I did not see many motorcycles on the road, but once I crossed into Wisconsin, Harleys started to appear in greater and greater numbers. I was shocked to see most riders were not wearing helmets. I thought everywhere in the Midwest there were helmet laws but no. You don't need a lid to ride. I decided to keep mine on at all times given that I promised my wife I would ride safe.

Seeing the bikes reminded me to check for more Harley Dealerships (poker chips!) And sure enough there were two on my way.

I was surprised to discover that Harley has a points system worth real cash. As a result I was able to get a "free" shirt at Doc's Harley Davidson (free as in prepaid by other purchases over the last year). That was very cool.

After that I stopped in Green Bay and discovered MadMaps - a competitor to Butler Maps, which had an awesome Wisconsin Michigan Touring map for Motorcycles. This is awesome because it laid out my trip around the Great Lakes for me. Super cool.

The weather stayed perfect, with blue sky's, puffy clouds, and cool breezes. I could easily wear my entire leather setup and not get warm. In fact, I was a little chilly riding in the morning out of Minnesota.

After Green Bay, I headed up to the coast and tried to follow a highway down toward Sheyboygan, but road closures and some confusing private roads ultimately force me to follow the US highway system southbound. I was disappointed because I really thought I was going to get to ride along the water... but that didn't happen.

But when I finally pulled up to Mike and Mary's house they were waiting for me in lawn chairs in the front yard. It was an amazing reception. I was so happy to arrive.